Devin Katayama

Devin Katayama joined WFPL News in summer 2011. He adds to the newsroom a diverse perspective having lived and reported in major cities across the U.S. and spending time in Peru reporting on human trafficking. Devin earned the 2011 Studs Terkel Community Media Scholarship Award for his report on homeless youth in Chicago. He reports on education affairs in Kentucky and Indiana.

The number of Kentucky children who are prepared for kindergarten is nearly unchanged over last year—half of kids entering school still don’t have the basic skills that the state deems as necessary to be “kindergarten-ready.”

The Kentucky Department of Education’s annual kindergarten readiness results released Wednesday show that 50 percent of children are prepared for a public education, a 1 percent increase from last year.

In Jefferson County Public Schools, 51.9 percent of children were ready for kindergarten this school year.

An independent Kentucky panel in charge of reviewing child abuse cases is requesting $420,000 from the state’s budget to perform its duties. The Child Fatality and Near Fatality Review Panel was created following criticism of accountability and transparency in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which deals with child abuse cases. Read more...

The University of Louisville is giving Norton Healthcare 30 days to back out of an agreement with the University of Kentucky to jointly operate Kosair Children's Hospital. Norton announced the partnership last week, saying it wanted to strengthen pediatric care in the commonwealth. This surprised U of L officials, who have also been trying to negotiate a similar contract with Norton. “The very fact that Norton made that announcement absent any discussion with the U of L and has touted it as being, It’s all about better pediatric care, is absolutely nonsense," says David Dunn, UofL's executive vice president of health affairs. Read more...

Over 1,000 unemployed youths are expected to attend KentuckianaWorks 8th annual Youth Opportunity Showcase Saturday to meet potential employers face to face. “If you get there before 10, you’ll see people lined up outside the door waiting to get in. It’s a little bit like the Macy’s wedding sale where you would see people rushing the door at ten o’clock," says Michael Gritton, ​executive director of KentuckyianaWorks, the federally mandated body overseeing job training and placement in the region.

A bill solidifying a panel to review child death and near death cases passed Kentucky’s House Health and Welfare Committee Thursday. Gov. Steve Beshear created an external government panel by executive order last year to review certain child abuse cases. The order—established in the summer of 2012—followed a failed attempt by the General Assembly to pass a bill that would have established a similar panel.

The best of the best cyclo-cross racers will now race Saturday after it was determined that Louisville's Eva Bandman cyclo-cross course could potentially flood Sunday from water levels in the Ohio River. "The projections are by Sunday that Beargrass Creek will come over its banks and flood the lower part of the course," said Karl Schmidtt, executive director of Louisville Sports Commission.

While many Americans will be tuning into the Super Bowl on Sunday, there's another big sports competition this weekend: the Cyclo-Cross World Championships. This weekend's event, in Louisville, Ky., marks the first time in its 60-year history that the world championships will be held outside of Europe. Cyclo-cross, a grueling sport requiring riders to traverse mud, sand and other obstacles, is growing rapidly in the U.S. And the fans can be a bit crazy. At the 2012 Louisville Derby City Cup, hundreds of people — some in costumes — packed onto the course to cheer the riders on.

The Kentucky Department of Education has released statewide data for two tests that show improvements over last year and state officials are pleased with the progress, but say there’s more work to be done. The EXPLORE and PLAN tests are taken in eighth and tenth grades respectively. The tests measure preparedness for high school and the ACT college entrance exam that all juniors take.

While many Americans will be tuning into the Super Bowl on Sunday, there's another big sports competition this weekend: the Cyclo-Cross World Championships. This weekend's event, in Louisville, Ky., marks the first time in its 60-year history that the world championships will be held outside of Europe.

Cyclo-cross, a grueling sport requiring riders to traverse mud, sand and other obstacles, is growing rapidly in the U.S. And the fans can be a bit crazy. At the 2012 Louisville Derby City Cup, hundreds of people — some in costumes — packed onto the course to cheer the riders on.